STI Trojan?

STI is a superb choice. The ONLY downside is that I've seen a number of them where the dark finish has developed a buffed sort of wear on the edges from use. If you'll be using it from a holster or don't handle it with care you'll find the same thing will occur. For folks that want it for serious shooting this is not a concern. But if you're the sort that fusses over every mark and even the slide to frame marks on the rails make you lose sleep an STI may not be the best choice.

STI changed the finish on the Trojan years ago.
 
Thanks for all the advice guys. I just took the plunge.....Trojan 5.0 with ambi safety in .45ACP just ordered from Freedom Ventures

A 'non-surprise' Christmas gift from my lovely wife!:bigHug:
 
Does it strike anyone else as a little odd that a $1300 gun only comes with one mag when almost all other guns I've bought (all much less costly) have come with two? (CZ's, Grand Powers, Brownings, even $299 Norinco etc etc...)

No big deal but it just strikes me as a little cheesy....sort of like getting charged for wifi at a $500 a night hotel when it's free at a $129 Hampton Inn.;)
 
1,2,3,4, it doesn't matter. You'll probably end up buying Wilson or Chips anyways.

I await my Trojan arrival this week (used), but a 9mm or Rangemaster 9mm has me thinking...

I think you did well with that price. Everything I found is that STI and Trojans are great guns. Only real improvement is maybe the front sights (black/black). I'm pretty excited. My sigs might be up for sale.
 
Does it strike anyone else as a little odd that a $1300 gun only comes with one mag when almost all other guns I've bought (all much less costly) have come with two? (CZ's, Grand Powers, Brownings, even $299 Norinco etc etc...)

No big deal but it just strikes me as a little cheesy....sort of like getting charged for wifi at a $500 a night hotel when it's free at a $129 Hampton Inn.;)
The STI mag works ok, but I'm using all Cobras now. Awesome mags.
 
The new STI mags are good. STI has stated that they don't include more mags because people usually use their own mags, so might as well keep the price down.
 
oohhhh! I think you're going to be happy!

Got mine tonight. Real nice. Don't need to describe the good. Youll see that soon enough. The bad?

1) the stock grips are slippery. I like a very positive grip. CZ's fixed that in 5 min.
2) The front strap "bark" is fine, but not exceptional. The rear strap although nice, is lacking. I'll be getting a rear metal strap.
3) Needs a magwell. Once again, another thing I'll be adding in short notice.
4) The fiber optic front sight would be very nice. I'll probably order the same time I get the above two parts.

Mine also has the Wilson Combat large slide lock. Love it!

I'm thinking of another in 9mm.....
 
Taken with a grain of salt, my experience with 1911 triggers include two Sig's. Maybe 1500-2000 rounds.

Sig 1 had a firm pull but crisp break. Accuracy suffered from how firm of pull it requires, but otherwise creep was non-existent.

Sig 2 has a rather light pull considering factory trigger, but has creep, small amount of "grit". Accuracy suffers on slow shots (still a very accurate gun), but what I think it improved on is my competition (3gun) use where trigger pull is important, but you're not making precise shots. Two in the A zone and move on type shooting. Here is where a constant, smooth pull negated any creep the trigger might have. I can easily say the trigger didn't affect my scoring.

Trojan, maybe 30-50 test trigger pulls appears to be not only light, but crisp. I'd like to shoot with it first, but I'm tempted to say it beats both Sig triggers by a sizeable margin. Its around or better for breaking than Sig 1, but has as light or lighter pull than Sig 2.

Would money make it better? Maybe. I haven't felt a reworked trigger and don't expect this to a be an ultra light pull. Overall I'm impressed but it depends what you are comparing it to. At the end of the day it is a relatively inexpensive 1911 at $1300 price range.


My biggest complaints:

1) Finish. I knew this going in. It's going to be a comp gun, run hard, and holstered. I expect the finish the wear and show the odd scratch, etc. It's well documented that STI, at least on the Trojans has an issue with this. I wouldn't expect it to be fixed or be improved on "newer" guns. A small part of me likes a gun with character. It shows it's experience and that's not a bad thing.
2) A gun of this quality should come with a mag well.
3) The rear strap being plastic should be metal. It's got the 25-30? LPI checkering, but it's not near aggressive as a metal equivalent. I know many don't like raw hands, but I love 1911's because of their "stick".
4) The front sight being black/black leaves a bit to be desired. Not sure if I'm going to tag it with some high vis paint, or change to a fibre optic sight. It's optional when you buy one though.

Where I notice the difference:

1) Tightness and finish. The beaver tail appears to be finished once the gun was assembled. The lines flow very well. Same with the grip safety and slide safety. Overall the tooling is good but for the guys who pay attention to the fine details, there were some tooling marks on either side of the barrel ramp (the ramp itself is mirrored), as well as a few marks around the trigger guard. Acceptable on a 1300$ gun? I think so, but still surprised the minor imperfections aren't caught/fixed, or tooling improved to stop it. At the end of the day, the Trojan is probably their most popular gun so their manufacturing numbers are probably the highest.
2) The slide locks into battery. No slop or light closing. It hangs up while locked. No wiggle, no easily pulling it out of battery. There's a "hump" required to get it to rack.
3) The slide is very tight. No noticeable rocking. Slides very well with proper lube, and seems to allude great fitting. Sounds are light and crisp. Almost like a cheezy movie dubbing the sounds of guns. Much of the same sound experience can be felt. It FEELS well made inside.

Hope that helps. I bought the gun used from a CGN member. It has me kicking myself in the arse that I didn't buy another one from FV's sale though.
 
Thanks for the good honest review.

I find that my SAM has a very crisp break with zero creep, but it is also far too heavy. The SR1911 is light and what creep there is feels like staging the trigger. My R1 is a bit mushy in the take up but fairly predictable. Like you would say - not the best for slow shooting. Sounds like the STI should be the best of all of them.

The only 1911 with a full trigger job that I've ever shot was a fellows Springfield bullseye gun. Trigger was so unexpectedly light that I touched it off before getting fully on target. It was like a smith revolver tuned to a ridiculous degree.
 
I called FV today as they hadn't yet charged my CC. They said they sold about 3X the guns they expected to in the sale and are still working through invoicing and starting transfers. My purchase from last Sat should go through tomorrow.

Looks like there are about to be a lot of new STI owners!!
 
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